In mid-October Gulfport Energy was one of the first out of the gate with information on the third quarter (see Gulfport 3Q16 Operations Update: Production Up 13%, Prices Up Too). However, that was only an operational report, and not the fuller, financial report. On Wednesday Gulfport delivered the full package/update. As we previously noted, natural gas production was up nicely. But a fuller reading of the numbers in this report shows that, like other Utica/Marcellus producers, both oil and natural gas liquids (NGL) production was down year over year for Gulfport. This confirms media reports we’ve noticed over the past few months (see Shift in Utica Drilling – from Wet Gas to Dry Gas and Why Utica Drillers are Moving from Wet Gas to Dry Gas). One reason to separate operational from financial updates is because the news in the financial update is typically not so good, while operational news typically is good. Once again we see that pattern. Gulfport lost $157 million in 3Q16–but that’s a big improvement from the $388 million loss in 3Q15. Here’s the fuller, financial update from Gulfport, including the news that the company plans to begin 2017 by running six rigs in the dry gas Utica…
